‘Why don’t you just tell us what light really is?’: Easy-to-implement teaching materials that link quantum physics to nature of science

High school students’ difficulties with quantum physics (QP) are partly dueto their limited understanding of the nature of science (NOS). The essence ofQP can only be understood with informed views about NOS aspects such asthe role of models and the relevance of controversies between physicists.Inversely, QP is an ideal topic for teaching aspects of NOS. However,secondary school textbooks seldom support teachers to explicitly addressNOS in QP. Drawing on a five year research program, including observationsof students and teachers, we present teaching resources that link NOSaspects with QP. Our materials support active and reflective learning